About to start chemo ECT it’s called 20th July

I had EC-T, but no break in between so that will be great for your body to get a rest before starting the different drug.

Everyone's side effects are different, but I found EC side effects came on from Day 1 and were more around nausea and lack of appetite but take your anti-sickness meds as prescribed and most people are fine with that. I found that docetaxel (the T) didn't come on for a couple of days but then it hit me quite hard, like a bad 'flu with other side effects thrown in! I had more aches and pains and chills on docetaxel so make sure you have plenty of paracetamol at the ready. I was far more tired on docetaxel and my muscles felt like jelly, but chemo is cumulative and I had had no break.

I found the anti-sickness meds gave me bad constipation for a few days but they can give you meds for that.

My big advice is to keep a diary of symptoms, I found that so useful to look back and see what I felt like on each day for previous cycles.

Some people sail through chemo and even though I had a rough time on docetaxel, I still working throughout chemo, only take a few days off after each cycle. 

I shaved my head ahead of chemo and it made me feel much more in control and I didn't really mind my hair falling out after that. It is now back and there is tonnes of it and I finished chemo in January - it is very slow to grow at first but then it takes off after 3 months or so.

I kept my eyebrows and lashes for EC but lost most of them during docetaxel, though the hair on my head started coming back in fuzzy at that point.

Good luck with it, your oncology team are there to help you so take notes and tell them your side effect - there should be something they can do for you if you're struggling with anything.

I have the same ec-t and start on Wednesday

Hi Neevy35

i’m glad to hear that you have a start date for your chemo.

Wishing you the best of luck with your treatments.

Best wishes

Daisy53

Thank you so much so helpful sounds like same one as mine so helpful xx

Ah good luck girl you be a wee bit head of me then we can keep each other going good luck xx

Thank you so much you have been so helpful from I got my diagnosis and from my surgery etc so thank you x

Hi, Neevy35 I had the same EC-T regime and roughly the same timings with SE as  Beatthebreast and now 7 weeks post chemo I am getting slowly back to normal. Just a few wee tips I found really helped me below. 

My 1st cycle of EC I had constipation for 7 days which was horrendous, I found starting the meds for this the day before chemo helped on the next cycles. It was mainly nausea and taste issues with a dry mouth on EC. Your team will give you anti nausea meds so don’t wait till you feel sick, be proactive and don’t suffer. I got tablets called Xylimelts on Amazon which you pop against your gum to help keep mouth moist, those were a game changer for me. Also Biotene mouthwash and toothpaste or Caphosyl mouthwash from your team, tell them any issues ASAP as most gave a solution. Heartburn and gastric reflux respond well to Omeprazole and it also helps with the nausea. 

Docetaxel it was mainly aches and pains and taste/mouth dryness again. I tried taking pain relief when I felt sore on the 1st cycle then on the next two cycles  just took Paracetamol and Naproxen regularly at max dose which made it much easier to cope with. I found a hot water bottle helped the aches at night. 

I was told to take my steroids at 7am and 1pm which I found meant I had less issues with sleeping than some, worth a try. 

Nail issues are also a common problem, there’s a product called Polybalm which you can order online for people having chemo. I used it from cycle 2 and my nails are slightly damaged and were painful after chemo #6 but so far only lost one toenail which I had banged and bruised anyway so was expecting it to need clipping off by podiatrist. 

Wishing you minimal and manageable side effects when you start. It’s totally doable, unpleasant some days, other days are good,  get outside when you can and even a 10min walk will help battle the fatigue. 

denise x

Hi, I’m having the same, 4 cycles of EC followed by 4 cycles of docetaxel. I’m currently on cycle number 2 and have my next chemo next week. My first cycle was really easy, I just felt tired and a tiny bit nauseous for 2 days, my second cycle i felt like that for a whole week. I’m really hoping it’s not going to get worse and worse each time. I also got really emotional last time and I think it was a crash from the steroids they give so just be aware of that! 
good luck for 20th! I feel like I’m literally just counting down days to my next chemo, it does go so quickly though x

Hi Pumpkinpie2002 glad your first couple of EC were manageable. Being brutally honest but yes the SE are generally cumulative, some people have it worse than others but I’d be lying if I said not to worry it won’t get any worse. 
I’d say just keep on top of SE as best you can, tell your team of any issues and take meds proactively rather than waiting for SE to kick in. 
I still managed a walk most days till cycle #5 and #6 when fatigue was quite bad at some points for about 10days. 
Try keeping a note of symptoms and you’ll see a pattern, I was better earlier in the day and did nice things then. By late afternoon I was tired and rested…listen to your body and rest when you’re tired…ask for help with housework if you need it and batch cook food or buy ready meals for days when you can’t be bothered cooking. 
I took steroids early in the day as advised…for my last cycle they weaned me off them gradually which meant less of a crash and delayed SE by a couple of days. Not sure what was best? If you struggle with nausea please ask for different meds, there are loads of options to try. I had it badly with EC but not at all with Docetaxel. 
Good luck with the rest of your cycles. 
denise x